Judge Sets Key Ruling In Open Meeting Case

September 23, 1993|By David Elsner, Tribune Staff Writer.

A Will County judge said he will rule Thursday on an issue that could significantly affect the prosecution of Monee and Peotone village trustees accused of holding secret meetings to discuss plans for an area sanitary district.

The issue is whether the officials can be tried for both the misdemeanor offense of violating the state's Open Meetings Act and the felony offense of official misconduct, a charge based on the same actions.

If Judge William Penn rules in favor of the defense, which on Wednesday asked him to throw out the felony charges, State's Atty. James Glasgow would suffer a serious setback, although he would undoubtedly appeal the ruling.

Conviction of official misconduct carries with it forfeiture of office and state pensions, a fine of up to $10,000 and possible jail time. Glasgow previously offered to reduce or eliminate charges against any of the officials who resigned voluntarily and presumably would agree to testify against their colleagues.

In a hearing Wednesday, defense attorney Frank Andreano, who represents the five current members of the Peotone Village Board who have been indicted, accused the prosecutor's office of "creatively bootstrapping" the felony charges and asked Penn to throw them out.

Andreano argued that the General Assembly had provided for fines of up to $500, but no jail time for violations of the Open Meetings Act, which are misdemeanor crimes under state statutes.

"If the legislature thought this was a felony offense, it would have made it a felony offense," he said. "To hold up and indict these public officials for felonies goes beyond what the state's attorney should rightly be able to do. It's clearly not what the legislature intended."

Andreano also argued that the prosecution's bringing of official misconduct charges based on alleged Open Meetings Act offenses "would have an extreme impact on people who seek these offices for under $1,500 a year and are basically volunteers."

"Why would anyone seek office in these small towns without an on-site legal staff to direct them?" he asked. "They would not," he continued, answering his own question.

Assistant State's Atty. Phil Mock responded that there was no discrepancy in the felony charges.